Why Does Google Collect Personal Information? Explained
With six products serving 2 billion monthly active users each and 15 more reaching half a billion[1], Google’s services ecosystem is deeply ingrained in people's lives worldwide. You can use Google’s products and services to find information, communicate, shop, navigate, and more. And every time you use the company’s services, it might gather some of your personal information.
In this article, we’ll explain why Google collects personal information and what data it gathers to help you understand how this impacts your privacy and user experience. You’ll also read about a method you can use to protect your payment card details during online transactions.
Disclaimer: The information in this guide is valid as of October 2024. For the most recent information, check Google’s Privacy & Terms or contact customer support directly.
What Information Does Google Collect?
When you create a Google account or use some of Google’s services, you might willingly provide some of your personal data to Google. For example, you can add your phone number to your Google account to enable additional security or provide credit card information if you want to use Google Pay. The company will also retain any content you create using Google’s services, such as photos, emails, or documents[2].
Google collects data about the apps, browsers, and devices you use to access its services, such as device and browser type and settings, operating systems, network information, and IP addresses[2]. The company will also log information about your activities across the services, including[2]:
- Terms you search for
- Chrome browsing history you’ve synced with your Google Account
- Purchase history and receipts
- People you communicate and share content with
- Videos you watch
- Voice and audio information when using Google Assistant
- Views and interactions with content and ads
- Activity on third-party sites and apps that use Google services
- Call and message log information, such as phone numbers, email addresses, date and time of calls and messages, and duration of calls
Depending on your settings and the services you use, Google may collect your location information, such as GPS and other sensor data, location history, and places you’ve labeled on Google Maps. It might also gather information about nearby devices, such as Wi-Fi access points, Bluetooth-enabled devices, and cell towers[2].
What Is Google's Reasoning for Collecting Your Personal Information?
Google collects some of your information to provide you with its services. For example, you couldn’t use Google Pay without giving your payment card number, as the service needs to connect to a payment method to work. You also wouldn’t be able to use Google Maps to get directions without disclosing where you are.
The company might also collect your personal information to[2]:
- Let you know about updates, changes, and important information about your Google account
- Personalize search results and ads based on your interests and preferences
- Maintain your preferences across browsing sessions and devices
- Suggest relevant content and recommendations based on your search history
- Offer location-based services like weather updates, local business information, and traffic alerts
- Improve and develop new services based on user feedback and data analysis
- Measure the performance and effectiveness of its services
- Detect, prevent, and respond to fraud, abuse, and security issues
How Does Google Protect Your Personal Information?
Google employs strong security measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction.
For example, the company encrypts your data when transferring it to make it unreadable if intercepted. Google also limits access to your data to authorized Google personnel (employees, contractors, and agents) who require it for specific processing tasks[2].
Other measures and features Google offers to protect your personal information include:
Google also regularly reviews user data collection, storage, and processing practices to safeguard against unauthorized system access[2].
Besides protecting your data, Google also gives you some control over how much data is collected and how it’s used. For example, you can turn off the Web and App Activity settings to stop Google from saving your activities with Google’s products and services. The company also lets you choose whether you want your information to be used to deliver you personalized ads[2].
How To Improve Your Data Privacy and Security
Keeping your personal information safe and private goes beyond limiting how much of it Google collects. Some additional ways to secure your personal information and improve your privacy online include:
- Using strong passwords—Create passwords using a combination of letters (upper and lower case), numbers, and special characters. A robust password manager such as Dashlane, 1Password, or Proton can make it easier to store and use complex and unique passwords.
- Browsing with a virtual private network (VPN)—A VPN like Surfshark, NordVPN, or ExpressVPN masks your IP address and encrypts your traffic when browsing the internet, making it harder for hackers to intercept sensitive information or advertisers to track you.
- Removing data from brokers—You can subscribe to data removal services that will send requests to data brokers on your behalf to have them delete your information from their possession.
If you want to keep your payment card data secure and reduce the risk of potential misuse, use virtual cards when shopping online. Virtual cards mask your real financial information with random card numbers to keep it safe from hackers.
While some banks offer virtual cards, choosing an independent provider like Privacy grants you robust security and advanced card controls.
Protect Your Financial Information With Privacy Cards
After connecting your debit card and bank account to it, Privacy lets you create virtual cards with unique 16-digit card numbers, expiration dates, and CVVs. You can use these cards to pay online without revealing your real financial information, and if the merchant suffers a data breach, potential hackers might only get access to your virtual card details.
Privacy is a PCI-DSS-compliant company that uses rigorous security measures to protect user data. For example, Privacy employs AES-256 encryption to encrypt data, implements HTTPS encryption for all website interactions, and uses firewalls on its servers to protect them from unauthorized access.
Other protection measures Privacy uses include:
- Two-factor authentication (2FA) through one-time codes sent through SMS or email or generated by authenticator apps for added account security
- Real-time transaction alerts that let you monitor card use and detect suspicious activity
- Regular third-party security audits to identify and fix potential vulnerabilities and ensure compliance with industry standards
Privacy Cards and Features
If you're a U.S. resident over 18 years old with a checking account at a U.S. bank or credit union, Privacy lets you create three types of cards:
- Single-Use Cards—These cards close automatically shortly after completing the first transaction. You can use them for one-time purchases on unfamiliar websites.
- Merchant-Locked Cards—These cards “lock” to the first merchant you use them with and can’t be used elsewhere. They’re a good fit for purchases on trusted websites and recurring payments like bills and subscriptions.
- Category-Locked Cards—These cards “tie” to a specific merchant category, such as travel or groceries, and can’t be authorized above your pre-defined limit. They can aid you in budgeting and tracking your expenses.
Privacy Cards allow you to set spending limits and pause or close them to reduce the risk of unauthorized payments. After setting a spending limit, Privacy will decline all charge attempts that go over the limit, helping protect against hidden fees and sudden price hikes.
The card-pausing or closing feature blocks all future transactions on your virtual cards, helping you avoid unwelcome charges, such as those that might occur when canceling a subscription.
Additional Convenience Features
To streamline virtual card management, Privacy offers several features:
- Privacy App—Available for Android and iOS, Privacy's mobile app lets you monitor your card usage in real time and receive transaction alerts whenever your cards are used or declined.
- Browser extension—You can install the Privacy Browser Extension for Google Chrome, Safari, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, and Safari for iOS to quickly generate virtual cards when shopping and autofill their details for faster checkouts.
- 1Password integration—Privacy’s integration with 1Password allows you to create, use, and save virtual cards and passwords directly from the 1Password browser extension.
How To Get Privacy Cards
To start using Privacy Cards, follow these four steps:
- Create a Privacy account
- Provide the details needed to verify your identity
- Link a funding source (bank account or debit card)
- Request a Privacy Virtual Card
You can select either of the following four Privacy plans depending on your specific needs and budget:
